Fight on the Right: Ilan Wurman's Democrat-Lite Prescription for the Country

Over at The CMC Forum, Ilan Wurman, my friend, co-worker, and one-time co-blogger, has a defense of using government and still being conservative.

Undoubtedly this comes from his having read Grand New Party by Ross Douthat and Reihan Salam, which among other things argues that we should have money that goes to people that decide to stay at home with the kids.

In the comments section, I argue that Ilan's distinction between "reformist Republicans" and Democrats is a distinction without a real philosophical difference. (And that he gets the narrative partially wrong on Scozzafava.) Why should government "help" people? It can only do that by taking something from others for that purpose! Why should we make a fetish of the middle class, when really the things that harm the middle class are more of the very government intrusions that the left favors? (Health care, education, and savings accounts would all be a lot cheaper were it not for the kinds of "help" that Ilan seems to like simply lead to higher inflationary rates.)

I think Ilan hasn't learned the lessons of why Bush was bad, if he continues to make these arguments. He has simply replaced a government that favors the poor, the unions, etc. with one that favors the middle class. What we need is a government that adheres to constitutional principles, not one that tries to be all things to all people.

In the spirit of camaraderie, let me just say that I challenge Ilan to a debate in the near future on these topics and others.